Did you see the 106 mph chase through Bellingham Thursday night? Here’s what happened
Police are still searching for a driver who led the Washington State Patrol on a high-speed chase on southbound Interstate 5 through Bellingham, into the Happy Valley neighborhood and areas around Western Washington University Thursday night.
The State Patrol broke off the pursuit, Trooper Heather Axtman said, two minutes before the driver crashed head-on into another car in the area of the intersection of High Street and East Chestnut Street and fled the scene on foot.
“The person is still at large,” Axtman said. “We don’t have a suspect at this time.”
The chase started when the State Patrol attempted to stop the driver of a 2001 Mitsubishi Gallant for speeding at approximately 10:15 p.m. near the Bakerview exit of Interstate 5. The driver reportedly sped off and led the State Patrol on a chase, reaching speeds of 106 mph, before exiting the highway at Old Fairhaven Parkway at approximately 100 mph.
The driver reportedly turned onto 30th Street, where he reached 66 mph, turned left on Donovan Avenue, then weaved his way through Happy Valley and the areas around Western Washington University. When the driver reportedly “blew through a three-way stop sign,” Axtman said troopers decided to end the chase.
“We still followed in the same direction we last saw him going, but at a much slower speed and without lights and sirens,” Axtman said. “We don’t know who he is or why he’s running, but at that point, public safety outweighs everything else, so we disconnected.”
Axtman said Troopers stayed within eyesight of the vehicle for approximately a minute. About a minute later, when the driver was reportedly heading southbound on High Street, the vehicle hit another car head-on at East Chestnut. According to Pulse Point, emergency crews were told to respond at 10:24 p.m.
The speeding car was “fully engulfed” in fire after the crash, Axtman said, and the driver fled on foot.
No serious injuries were reported in the crash, though one person was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital as a precaution, Axtman said.
The State Patrol, with the assistance of the Bellingham Police Department and Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, searched the area extensively, Axtman said, including using police dogs, but could not locate the driver.
“We were on scene almost immediately after it happened, and with the way this one went down, I’m thankful nobody was seriously hurt,” Axtman said, “but I’m not thankful that we don’t have somebody in custody.”
Axtman described the suspect as bald, “probably male” and with tattoos on his neck. She asked anybody with information on the incident to call dispatch at 360-654-1200.
Thursday’s high-speed chase was the State Patrol’s second in Whatcom County in a little more than 24 hours, as a woman who reportedly did not stop Wednesday at the Peace Arch Border Crossing also reached triple digits on southbound I-5 before her car broke down in Ferndale.
This story was originally published July 27, 2018 at 8:43 AM.